Mahavira

"All breathing, existing, living, sentient creatures should not be slain, nor treated with violence, nor abused, nor tormented, nor driven away."

"Non-violence and kindness to living beings is kindness to oneself. For thereby ones own self is saved from various kinds of sins and resultant sufferings and is able to secure his own welfare."

"A living body is not merely an integration of limbs and flesh but it is the abode of the soul which potentially has perfect perception (Anant-darshana), perfect knowledge (Anant-jnana), perfect power (Anant-virya), and perfect bliss (Anant-sukha)."

"Kill not, cause no pain. Nonviolence is the greatest religion."

"Desistance from sin makes one entirely happy."

"Maahavira proclaimed a profound truth for all times to come when he said: "One who neglects or disregards the existence of earth, air, fire, water and vegetation disregards his own existence which is entwined with them" Jain cosmology recognizes the fundamental natural phenomenon of symbiosis or mutual dependence, which forms the basis of the modern day science of ecology It is relevant to recall that the term "ecology" was coined in the latter half of the nineteenth century from the Greek word oikos, meaning "home", a place to which one returns Ecology is the branch of biology which deals with the relations of organisms to their surroundings and to other organisms The ancient Jain scriptural aphorism Parasparopagraho Jivaanaam (All life is bound together by mutual support and interdependence) is refreshingly contemporary in its premise and perspective It defines the scope of modern ecology while extending it further to a more spacious "home" It means that all aspects of nature belong together and are bound in a physical as well as a metaphysical relationship Life is viewed as a gift of togetherness, accommodation and assistance in a universe teeming with interdependent constituents"

"Mahavira, the Jain patriarch, surpassed the morality of the Bible with a single sentence: "Do not injure, abuse, oppress, enslave, insult, torment, torture, or kill any creature or living being." Imagine how different our world might be if the Bible contained this as its central precept."